Mirage Chaos
by ExoZadakh
Summary: When the Mirage Arena is compromised, it's up to three friends who've never met to fight for its safety.  Do they stand a chance of winning, or will they all be knocked down?  Terra, Ven, and Aqua vs. Garland.


(This story does not necessarily fit with the canon timelines of Final Fantasy, Dissidia Final Fantasy, or Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, though there are other stories in this timeline. It should also be noted that it includes my personal interpretation of the Mirage Arena, a world in Birth by Sleep that was never really explained. Restrictions/details for the fight are below.)

Basic: Fight takes place inside the Mirage Arena; 3-on-1; 'Mirage EX Cores' will randomly appear and activate EX Mode for Garland or a random second level Command Style for Terra, Ventus, or Aqua

Garland: High level; advanced equipment and accessories; Dissidia moveset, but Brave attacks deal HP damage; no summons

Terra: High level; Chaos Reaper Keyblade; Ultima Cannon Shootlock; no D-Link; no items; no defined deck but limits on powerful moves (including low Focus regeneration); Block, Slide, Air Slide, Sonic Impact, Jump, Counter Hammer abilities; Demolition finisher

Ventus: High level; Lost Memory Keyblade; Multi-Vortex Shootlock; no D-Link; no items; no defined deck but limits on powerful moves (including low Focus regeneration); Block, Dodge Roll, Air Slide, Jump, Counter Rush abilities; Stratosphere finisher

Aqua: High level; Bright Crest Keyblade; Shiny Bloom Shootlock; no D-Link; no items; no defined deck but limits on powerful moves (including low Focus regeneration); Barrier, Cartwheel, Air Slide, Jump, Counter Blast abilities; Teleport Strike finisher

**Mirage Chaos**

Aqua entered the lobby of the Mirage Arena and crossed the room, spotting Terra and Ventus near the console. They weren't the Terra and Ven she knew, however—being in the Mirage Arena, she knew that each of them hailed from a completely different timeline, meaning that these three had never truly met each other.

"Hey Aqua," Terra greeted. "Something's up with the Arena—we can't program an event."

Aqua studied the console and hit a few buttons, and then she said, "It looks like there's an event going on, but we should still be able to create a new one…"

A beam of light appeared in the center of the lobby along with a man in brown armor with a green mask, who stumbled and said, "I knew he wouldn't listen to reason…"

"What's going on?" Ven asked.

The stranger paused and said, "Oh, it's you guys! I've been looking over your Arena records—very impressive."

"Uh…thanks," Terra said. "Who are you?"

"I'm Pahrak, a…caretaker of the Mirage Arena," the stranger said. "As you've probably noticed, the system's been compromised—Garland found the Mirage Arena in his dimension and took over. He won't listen to me, and I can't stop him…"

"We'll take care of it," Ven offered.

"Hold on," Aqua said. "Who is Garland?"

"He was a knight in another dimension before he went rogue," Pahrak said. "Now he's gained immense power…if you do fight him, don't let your guard down. I'm going to go contact my master and see if he has any advice."

Pahrak walked off and Terra stepped towards the light, Aqua calling, "Wait Terra! You're not going in alone, are you?"

"If he beats me, then you two can still wear him down," Terra said.

"No way I'm letting you fight alone!" Ven said. "We'll all team up and take this guy down!"

"I have to agree," Aqua said. "The Terra of my timeline got into a lot of trouble by going off on his own, and I don't want to see another Terra make the same mistake."

"…Okay, we'll fight together," Terra said, and then he, Ven, and Aqua all touched the beam of light and were transported to the arena.

When they arrived they faced a large man in dark gray armor with a horned helmet and purple cape, and in one hand he held some kind of giant sword. Terra summoned his Chaos Reaper and said, "I take it you're Garland?"

"Correct," the man said. "You three are my new opponents?"

Ven summoned Lost Memory and said, "What have you done to the Mirage Arena?"

"I took it as my own, of course," Garland said. "A world that pits warrior against warrior, a world of endless battle! This is the perfect world for me!"

Aqua summoned Bright Crest and asked, "Is fighting really that important to you?"

"Why do you ask such an obvious question?" Garland said. "Why else would anyone come to this world? You yourself embrace the cycle of battle just by coming here! You think teaming up will defeat me? Ha! I, Garland, will knock you all down!"

He shot out in a flash, cutting past Ven, and then his weapon changed into a hammer-like form and he smashed Ven into the floor. Terra used Sonic Blade but Garland blocked and swung his sword in a circle, sending Terra flying, and then he split his sword in two and attacked Aqua, who narrowly dodged only to be hit when Garland shot his weapon out on a chain. Garland dashed up to Aqua and used his hammer attack to send her to the floor, and then he pivoted and used a Cyclone to deflect Dark Firaga and blocked when Ven attacked. Aqua attacked from behind but Garland used Earthquake to give himself breathing room, and Terra dodged Tsunami and used Chaos Blade to land a hit. Ven moved in to use Tornado Strike but Garland jumped back and used Blaze, knocking Ven away with bullets of fire. Terra swung his blade, missing, and dodged a counterattack, and when he spotted light emanating from Aqua he quickly slid away. Garland turned as Aqua used her Shiny Bloom Shootlock, sending dozens of light blasts at Garland, and though the fiend blocked a few he was quickly overwhelmed by the barrage.

"Impressive!" Garland said, getting back up. "This is more than I expected from you!"

The three Keybladers ran forward, but then the air flashed and, sensing something behind them, they stopped and looked over their shoulders. A bell-shaped object with four wings at the top had appeared on the far side of the arena, and suddenly Garland dashed over and grabbed it. The bell vanished instantly, but energy now radiated from Garland as his appearance changed—his armor took on a lighter shade, and his cape became white with red designs.

"What was that thing?" Ven asked.

Garland just laughed and charged, and Terra cast Quake in an attempt to stop him. Rocks rose and struck Garland, but he seemed to ignore them as he swung his sword on its chain and knocked Terra away. Aqua surged forward with Reflect Blitz but Garland ignored the hit and used a spinning blade strike to throw her.

Ven was next to exchange hits with Garland, and Pahrak's voice said, "You guys alright?"

"Not exactly," Terra said, dodging Blaze. "Garland grabbed this bell thing and now he's even more powerful."

"A Mirage EX Core," Pahrak said. "If another one appears, try to grab it—they unleash hidden powers through transformation."

"You're a fool if you think I'll allow them to do that, Pahrak," Garland said, knocking Terra down with his weapon. "Accept your fate—you cannot defeat me!"

Terra rolled and leapt up, but then Garland's sword blazed with light and he split it in two. Garland and Terra vanished from the arena for a moment, appearing in a swirling vortex of light, and Garland threw his blades over and over again, the weapons striking Terra before boomeranging back, and then Garland slammed both into Terra and pulled his sword back.

"Soul of Chaos!" Garland screamed, unleashing a spinning two-hit strike that knocked Terra unconscious. They returned to the arena and Garland reverted to normal, and then he rushed at Ven and knocked him into the air.

Aqua quickly went to Terra's side and revived him, asking, "Terra, what happened?"

"I think he used all of that hidden power in one attack," Terra groaned.

Ven used Multi-Vortex to pin Garland down and Aqua created Seeker Mines, and Terra readied his Keyblade for when Garland recovered. Sure enough, Garland soon swept Ven away in a Cyclone, and that's when Terra lunged and used Solo Arcanum, making swift, powerful strikes that forced Garland back.

Ven got to his feet and jumped as a Mirage Core appeared next to him, and Pahrak shouted, "Ven! Take it!"

As soon as he touched the Core Ven entered Wingblade style, and Garland threw Terra aside and laid eyes on Ven. Furious, Garland used his lance charge attack but Aqua got in front of him and used her barrier, and as Garland was sent reeling Ven flew in and began swinging his multiple energy blades. Terra got up and stepped back, seeing Garland manage to escape and retaliate against Ven, so he used Zantetsuken to cut past garland and then Aqua used Atomos Break to smash Garland into the wall. Ven flew in and used his Wingblade finisher, causing him to revert, but then Garland used Blaze to knock away all his foes.

"Try all you like, but you will not strike me down!" Garland said. "My power is without limits!"

"We'll see about that!" Ven said, unleashing Holy Rise.

Garland rolled out of the way and Terra cast Meteor, but Garland dashed out of range, and as he used twin swords to attack Ven and Terra, Aqua activated Raging Storm. With flame pillars circling around her Aqua moved forward and forced Garland back, and Ven and Terra healed themselves and tried to think of a plan.

"Terra, throw me at Garland!" Ven said.

"What?" Terra responded.

"Trust me!" Ven insisted.

Terra hesitated, but then he targeted Ven with Collision Magnet and threw him straight at their foe. Garland had just sent Aqua flying when Ven came close enough to begin Ars Arcanum, the force of the throw adding to his initial strikes and toppling Garland, meanwhile a Mirage EX Core appeared right where Aqua soon landed. Now in Ghost Drive style, Aqua quickly got back on her feet as Garland knocked Ven down and used Tsunami on Terra. Garland attacked Aqua but his sword passed through her—an afterimage—and the real Aqua began attacking him over and over, warping after every strike. Aqua used her finisher but Garland managed to escape, guarding as the others attacked him, and he used an uppercut on Terra before smashing Ven into the floor.

"Hang in there, guys!" Pahrak cheered. "You still have a chance to win!"

Garland threw Aqua into the wall and said, "Don't make me laugh! These knights may know a thing or two about battle, but they don't have the strength to defeat me!"

Terra got to his feet and growled, and then he raised his Keyblade and said, "Aqua…Ven…keep him still."

Ven and Aqua both used Time Splicer, attacking Garland from every angle to keep him in one spot, and Terra's Keyblade transformed into the Ultima Cannon and charged a blast. Garland used a spinning swipe to repel Ven and Aqua, but then Terra fired his cannon and blasted Garland with unbelievable force. A Mirage EX Core appeared as Terra's weapon returned to normal, so he took it and entered the Dark Impulse style as Garland got up. Terra used several flowing swings of his Keyblade to attack Garland, but the knight parried each one, and when Terra unleashed a hand made of darkness Garland got behind him and used Earthquake. Garland went on the move as Aqua attempted Magic Hour, almost running into Ven's Spark Raid, but he avoided all damage and used his sword's chain to strike them all.

"That's enough," Garland said, grabbing Terra as he rose from the ground to attack.

Another Mirage EX Core appeared so Garland threw Terra away and took it, and then he caught all his foes in a Cyclone and used Soul of Chaos to decimate them. Garland surveyed his foes warily and moved forward, but he was still surprised when Ven leapt up and used Tornado to sweep him away.

Ven revived his companions and said, "He's too powerful. We need something big to take him down."

"You have to combine your power," Pahrak advised. "It's your only chance."

Garland was standing now, so Aqua quickly held out her Keyblade and said, "Okay…Trinity Limit!"

A seal appeared on the ground beneath the young heroes and an orb of light appeared above them, and Garland attacked but his blade had no effect. "On three," Aqua said as they all readied their weapons.

"One…"

Garland lifted his sword and said, "As soon as you're vulnerable…"

"Two…"

"I'm going to know you down!"

"Three!"

Terra, Ven, and Aqua all stabbed the orb with their Keyblades at the same time, causing light to burst forth and fill the entire arena, and they heard Garland shout as the blast washed over him. The light soon died down and the seal disappeared, and Garland knelt on the far side of the arena. Aqua cast Bind, keeping him still as Ven unleashed a barrage of swift strikes, and then Terra leapt up and used Meteor Crash to crush Garland and end the battle at last.

"Nnng…impressive…" Garland said as he faded away. "You think you have one…but the cycle will continue…"

He disappeared and Terra, Ven, and Aqua appeared back in the Arena Lobby, and from beside the console Pahrak sighed, "Whew…nice job! Now I can fix the Arena!"

"I guess we'll have to find something else to do until that's done," Terra said. "So much for training."

"Hold on," Pahrak said. "You guys deserve a special prize for defeating Garland, so as a way of saying thanks…"

He waved his hand and three small orbs of light flew out towards the heroes. Each of them grabbed one and Pahrak said, "Now you can use Garland's Soul of Chaos as a Shootlock. It may not be quite as effective as his version, but it'll still prove useful, I'm sure."

"Thanks Pahrak!" Ven said. "Well, I guess I'll see you guys around. Take care!"

With that he stepped on the teleporter pad and left the lobby, and Terra nodded in Pahrak's direction before leaving as well. Aqua turned to Pahrak and said, "When we defeated Garland, he said something about a 'cycle'…we did defeat him, didn't we?"

"You did…but Garland has a unique destiny that can't be stopped," Pahrak said. "In another time he will gain a new level of power…but that's not something you have to worry about."

"If there's a way I can help, I want to," Aqua said. "Please, tell me."

Pahrak hesitated before saying, "Well…I'll nominate you for recruitment as a Mirage Warrior. If master approves, I'll contact you."

"…Alright then," Aqua said.

She left the lobby and Pahrak sighed, and then he stomped on the floor and a door slid open in front of his foot. He took a toolbox from behind the console and descended a staircase, knowing that the chances of his master recruiting Aqua were next to nothing.


End file.
